Your mother would be happy if she were here.

Chapter 268

The taxi pulled up downstairs at Binjiang Garden. The three of them headed upstairs, carrying bags of all sizes.

Ye Zhenzhen walked through the door, dropped her bags on the coffee table, and collapsed onto the sofa.

She stretched out her long legs, wiggling her toes inside her pure white cotton socks.

Catching out of the corner of her eye that Gu Ran had placed the bag containing Gu Xiangcheng's clothes in the most conspicuous spot on the armrest of the sofa, the young girl swung her legs in smug satisfaction.

Quite the filial son.

As if possessing a spider-sense, Gu Ran turned his head, met her gaze, and flashed a bright smile.

Staring at his lips, the girl couldn't help but recall what had happened in the fitting room.

Her delicate earlobes visibly flushed red. She quickly stood up, pretending she needed to pour a glass of water.

Seeing this, Gu Ran strolled over after her, asking with feigned concern, "Are you hot, sis? Why are your ears so red?"

As he spoke, he reached out and gently pinched her burning earlobe.

Ye Zhenzhen held her cup high to drink, wishing she could bury her entire little face into the rim. She replied in a muffled voice, "N-nothing."

Gu Ran wanted to say something else, but the girl hurriedly put down her cup and darted into her room.

With a loud bang.

The door shut cleanly and decisively behind her.

Gu Ran stared at the door for two seconds and rubbed his nose.

...

Just past six in the evening, the door lock clicked.

Gu Xiangcheng changed into his slippers and came in. He glanced at the shopping bags with gold-stamped logos on the coffee table and lifted one to take a look.

"Went shopping?"

Ye Shulian was prepping dinner. Hearing the noise, she poked her head out of the kitchen. She hadn't even had time to take off her apron, and the smile on her face was impossible to hide.

She walked briskly to the coffee table and, like a little girl showing off a treasure, shook the navy blue embroidered cheongsam out of its bag and held it up against herself.

"Does it look good?"

Gu Xiangcheng paused for a moment, then smiled. "It looks good. It'll definitely look even better when you wear it."

The tips of Ye Shulian's ears turned a little red as she playfully scolded, "Smooth talker."

"Uncle, you're back!"

Ye Zhenzhen rushed out of her room and greeted him with a beaming smile. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she grabbed Ye Shulian's arm and dragged her toward her bedroom.

"Mom, come on, come on! I'm going to style you!"

"What styling? I haven't finished washing the vegetables yet..."

"Oh, I'll help you with that later."

Ye Shulian was half-dragged, half-pushed into the room by her daughter. The moment the door closed, a faint "Be gentle!" could still be heard.

The living room fell quiet.

Seizing the opportunity, Gu Ran pushed the bag on the sofa armrest in front of Gu Xiangcheng.

"Dad, this is yours."

Gu Xiangcheng looked down, reached in, and pulled out the black Zhongshan suit with its traditional knotted buttons.

He rubbed the fabric between his fingers, examined the embroidery on the shoulders, and the corners of his mouth twitched.

"How much was it?"

"Not expensive."

"I asked you how much it was."

"It really wasn't expensive. Just treat it as a token of respect from your son."

Gu Xiangcheng snorted. He draped the clothes over his arm, inspecting them over and over, while words of complaint started tumbling out of his mouth:

"I'm a police officer. What would I look like wearing this?"

"What a waste."

"Instead of spending money on this, it'd be better to..."

However, the hand gripping the suit never loosened its hold.

Gu Ran leaned back on the sofa, not even needing to smile to show his amusement.

"Just try it on."

Muttering "Fine, I'll try it on," Gu Xiangcheng carried the clothes into the bedroom.

A few minutes after the door closed, it was pushed open again.

Gu Xiangcheng walked out and stood right in the middle of the living room.

The black Zhongshan suit fit his shoulders and back flawlessly.

Supported by the upright posture he had developed over years as a detective, the outfit gave him an imposing aura without him even having to look stern. He looked like a character who had walked straight out of an espionage drama.

Gu Ran blinked.

"Dad, you actually look... pretty handsome."

Gu Xiangcheng kept a straight face and tugged at his cuffs.

"Stop kissing up."

Despite his words, he took a couple of extra steps toward the full-length mirror and turned sideways to glance at himself.

He paused for three seconds.

Only then did he look away, but he did not mention taking the clothes off.

Gu Ran took it all in and tactfully stayed silent.

About half an hour later, Ye Zhenzhen's bedroom door finally reopened.

Ye Shulian walked out slowly, bearing a rare touch of shyness.

Her hair was pinned up, revealing the clean lines of her neck.

The makeup wasn't heavy, but the contours around her eyes and brows had been meticulously outlined, significantly elevating her overall complexion.

Wrapped in the navy blue cheongsam, which perfectly complemented her gentle frame, she looked like a late-blooming flower blossoming at just the right time.

Gu Xiangcheng had been sitting on the sofa reading the newspaper. Catching the movement out of the corner of his eye, he looked up—and didn't look back down.

The newspaper was lowered to his knees.

Ye Zhenzhen pushed Ye Shulian forward by the shoulders from behind. Seeing this, Gu Ran also pulled Gu Xiangcheng up, leading the two of them all the way to the full-length mirror.

"Come on, come on! You two stand together and take a look!"

In the mirror stood the black Zhongshan suit and the navy blue cheongsam.

The two stood side by side, neither saying a word.

Gu Xiangcheng looked at Ye Shulian in the mirror, then at himself. His Adam's apple bobbed, and he swallowed the words that had reached the tip of his tongue.

Ye Shulian didn't speak either. She just lowered her head and reached out to adjust the collar of his Zhongshan suit, her fingertips lingering for a brief moment.

Ye Zhenzhen quietly raised her phone, adjusted the angle, and pressed the shutter.

A very soft cough came from behind her.

She turned her head and saw Gu Ran leaning against the wall, winking at her. He silently mouthed three words:

"Make it good."

The girl rolled her eyes at him, but she couldn't stop the corners of her mouth from curving upward.

She snapped two more pictures.

...

After Ye Shulian's extreme makeover by her daughter, Gu Xiangcheng's gaze never left her.

Feeling flustered under his stare, Ye Shulian playfully swatted his arm and hurriedly dragged her daughter into the kitchen as if fleeing the scene.

Seeing them leave, Gu Xiangcheng reluctantly withdrew his gaze, changed back into his casual clothes, and sat on the sofa.

The tea in his thermos cup had long since gone cold, but he didn't mind.

Gu Ran followed suit and sat next to him, jokingly asking, "Dad, you're not going to give me a little brother, are you..."

"Stop talking nonsense!" Seeing his father looking uncharacteristically embarrassed, Gu Ran finally put on a serious face.

He pulled his phone from his pocket and opened the downloaded backend data dashboard for his app.

He turned the screen horizontally and pushed it in front of Gu Xiangcheng.

"Dad, take a look at the data from these past few days over the National Day holiday."

Gu Xiangcheng habitually narrowed his eyes, fished out his reading glasses from under the coffee table, put them on, and leaned in close to look.

Daily active users.

Total messages sent.

Average online time per user.

Registration growth curve.

Every single metric was followed by a red upward-pointing arrow. The numbers were densely packed, filling the entire screen.

He stared at the screen for a long time.

His fingers tapped absently on the coffee table a few times before stopping.

Gu Ran didn't show off. He simply and plainly broke down the logic behind the explosive user growth during the National Day holiday.

The natural organic growth brought on by the nationwide launch.

The viral spread driven by acquaintance-based social networking.

The word-of-mouth reputation on college campuses beginning to spill over into general society.

He spoke every sentence at an even, unhurried pace, as if giving a formal work report.

After listening to him, Gu Xiangcheng fell into silence.

A silence longer than any before.

He picked up the cup of long-cold tea, took a sip, and set it back down.

"...At least you didn't embarrass me."

The few words were squeezed out, as if forced through his teeth one by one.

After speaking, he turned his head toward the balcony, not sparing Gu Ran another glance.

Similarly, Gu Ran didn't press the matter further, only replying with a low "Mhm."

The living room was quiet for a while, filled only with the sounds of stir-frying and the hum of the range hood from the kitchen.

Gu Ran didn't mind that Lao Gu lacked emotional expressiveness, because he knew that the phrase "not an embarrassment" was the highest praise he could give his son.

After a moment, he continued, "Dad, this is just the starting point. By the end of the year, daily active users are expected to exceed twenty million. Next spring, we'll start commercialization, and if everything goes smoothly—"

Gu Xiangcheng didn't quite understand the technical jargon that followed.

But he understood the words "twenty million."

The thermos in his hand bumped against the coffee table with a dull thud.

Startled by the noise, Ye Shulian peeked out from the kitchen doorway.

Gu Xiangcheng waved her off.

Ye Shulian glanced at him but didn't ask any questions. She retreated and closed the kitchen door behind her, leaving the father and son to their private space.

Gu Xiangcheng sat in his spot for a long time, completely motionless.

Gu Ran was just about to get up when his father finally spoke again.

"...If your mother were here."

"She would be happy."

As soon as the words fell, Gu Ran's Adam's apple bobbed.

He pressed his lips tightly together and remained silent.

...

...

Dinner tonight was incredibly sumptuous.

The lamb ribs were roasted crisp on the outside and tender on the inside, and Ye Shulian had also made a sweet and sour fish and some garlic broccoli.

The four of them sat around the table. The atmosphere was more relaxed than at any previous meal.

As the meal was coming to an end, Gu Ran set down his chopsticks.

"Tonight, Sister Zhenzhen and I discussed going camping at Beishan so we can watch the sunrise tomorrow morning."

Ye Zhenzhen: "???"

When did she discuss this?

Ye Shulian put down her bowl, glanced at her daughter, and smiled.

"That's great, young people should go out more."

A bit surprised by his wife's attitude, Gu Xiangcheng paused with his chopsticks and swallowed the words he was about to say.

After dinner, everything was cleaned up.

Under the pretext of helping her daughter check her luggage, Ye Shulian pulled Ye Zhenzhen into the master bedroom and closed the door.

She walked over to the nightstand, pulled open the innermost drawer, and took out two small, plainly packaged square boxes.

With her ears turning red, she placed them into Ye Zhenzhen's palm.

"Mom is just being careful."

She tried her best to keep her voice calm, but her gaze remained fixed elsewhere.

"It's better to be safe than sorry. Put them away... just so you know."

Ye Zhenzhen looked down and clearly saw what was in her hand.

She froze in place.

Her lips parted a few times, and her face began to burn from the base of her neck upward.

"Mom!! Why are you giving me this?!"

"Shh—keep your voice down!"

Ye Shulian hurriedly covered her mouth, her own face flushing red with anxiety. "Put it away! Mom isn't saying you guys definitely will... just in case... keep them!"

Ye Zhenzhen clutched the two boxes, her hands trembling. She wished she could find a hole in the ground to crawl into.

Meanwhile.

On the balcony.

Gu Xiangcheng had also called Gu Ran out.

He didn't light a cigarette.

He just stood with his back to the night scenery outside the window, both hands resting on the railing.

"You know the rules. No matter where you go—"

He paused.

"You are not allowed to cross the line."

"You know what I mean."

Gu Ran answered honestly.

"Mhm."

Gu Xiangcheng gave him a long look. "You're grown up now, so I won't say too much."

"I know, Dad. Don't worry."

Hearing this, Gu Xiangcheng turned his head and stared earnestly at his son standing before him.

This past year felt like a dream.

From his son's change in temperament to his current growth, it seemed that ever since Shulian's arrival, everything had been moving in a good direction.

Well, the brat's suggestion wasn't bad. He could consider trying for a second child...

Snapping out of his thoughts, he reached out and patted Gu Ran's shoulder. "As long as you know. Go pack your clothes, and don't let Zhenzhen freeze."

After saying that, he walked back to his room with light steps and simply brewed a cup of goji berry tea.